Malibu couple celebrates victory in ‘granny flat’ case
Malibu, CA; May 9, 2024: Last week, the California Supreme Court declined to review a recent California Court of Appeals decision which held that the City’s coastal policies do not prohibit homeowners from building attached accessory dwelling units (ADUs). “The City of Malibu went to extreme lengths to block a small ADU for an octogen ...
At Stake: PLF’s relentless fight to stop Presidential Antiquities Act abuses
President Biden turns 150-year-old family ranch into national monument PLF’s relentless fight to stop Presidential Antiquities Act abuses Chris Heaton’s family arrived in America’s west in 1871 and have ranched in Utah and Arizona ever since. Six generations later, Chris and his wife Cassie run a 50,000-acre cattle ranch, continui ...
Explaining the Fourth Amendment: What counts as persons, houses, papers, and effects?
This series will focus on what “persons,” “houses,” “papers,” and “effects” mean, tackling each in turn, and examining how they stack up against the increasingly sophisticated ways that cities, bureaucrats, police officers, and even municipal code inspectors investigate Americans in the 21st century. ...
The Commerce Clause made easy
The federal government asserts most of its modern regulatory power over the individual ostensibly under the Commerce Clause, and therefore, it’s important for anyone who loves liberty to understand its true scope. This article looks at the clause’s background and then the two main powers that it gives the federal government. Background ...
R.J. Smith, champion of private conservation
In 1981, scholar R.J. Smith argued private property rights were key to preserving natural resources and wildlife. “The problems of environmental degradation, overexploitation of natural resources, and depletion of wildlife all derive from their existence as common property resources,” he wrote in “Resolving the Tragedy of the Co ...
Fox News: Supreme Court can fix the homeless crisis that the government caused
On Monday, April 22, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson . The question before the justices is: did the Ninth Circuit correctly hold that the Eighth Amendment prevents cities from enforcing civil or criminal restrictions on the homeless sleeping or camping on public property? Underlying the specific legal … ...
California occupational licensing bill picks winners and losers based on their race
California legislators are considering a bill that gives the government the authority to choose winners and losers based solely on their race. According to the Little Hoover Commission, as of 2016, one in five Californians are required to obtain an occupational license before they are allowed to earn a living in their chosen career field. … ...